Mesmerized by the Enormous "Eye" at the Center of the Sahara Desert

In the middle of the last century, people discovered a strange geological structure, dating back millions of years, with many intertwined circles that look like a giant eye jutting out of the middle of the Sahara desert in the middle of the desert. previous century. west of Mauritania, near the Ouadane region. This “eye” is considered a masterpiece of nature and its formation process is still a mystery to mankind. Kalb ar-Rishat, also known as the “Eye of the Sahara” or “The Blue Eye of Africa”, is a circular geological structure, 45 km in diameter, located in the desert part of Mauritania.

According to scientists, people do not know the existence of this eye-shaped structure because its massive and mysterious appearance is difficult to recognize from the ground. This wonder was known only when man made space flights. Currently, it is one of the subjects they photographed the most, because it is very beautiful from space. Recently, Canadian cosmonaut Chris Hadfield photographed the “eye of the Sahara” from aboard the International Space Station (ISS). His photo caused a real “craze” in the world.

The “Eye of the Sahara” is the result of soil erosion from the late Protozoic to the mid-Ordovician Sandstone period. Sedimentary rock formations form an outer crust. Internally, erosion is more pronounced in the quartzite layers, creating fragile circular slopes. In the central position, the “Eye of the Sahara” is covered by a layer of rubble with a total radius of up to 3km.

Many theories have been put forward for the formation of this beautiful structure, but so far, there is no definitive answer as to the appearance of the Sahara Eye structure. Some scientists speculate that Richat is the cause of volcanic deposits or a meteorite impact millions of years ago. Others believe that this is the remnants of the mysterious Atlantics continent that has disappeared for many years.

In Plato’s “Timaeus”, the continent of Atlantis was a large island, larger than present-day Libya and Asia combined. This legendary nation dominated the surrounding lands and continued to conquer other places. However, the invasion was stopped by brave Athenian warriors. The legendary continent of Atlantis collapsed unexpectedly. Earthquakes and great floods have submerged the island into the sea. This event is believed to have occurred in the 9th century BC.

Scientists and astronauts love the eye-shaped structure because most of the Sahara desert is a vast sand sea. The Sahara Eye is one of the few geological models with important features that help them understand the Earth’s topography.